title: Sinularia leptoclados (Ehrenberg, 1834) (Cnidaria, Octocorallia) re-examined.
abstract: Sinularia leptoclados (Ehrenberg, 1834) is re-described. Sinularia leptoclados var. gonatodes Kolonko, 1926 is synonymized with Sinularia maxima Verseveldt, 1977. Two new species of Sinularia with digitiform lobules, leptoclados-type surface clubs and unbranched interior spindles, are described. An updated maximum likelihood tree of Sinularia species with leptoclados-type clubs (clade 5C) based on two mitochondrial genes (mtMutS, COI) and a nuclear gene (28S rDNA) is presented.
authors.affiliation: Department of Marine Zoology, Naturalis Biodiversity Center, P.O. Box 9517, 2300 RA Leiden, the Netherlands.
authors.forename: Leen P
authors.initials: LP
authors.lastname: van Ofwegen
authors.forename: Yehuda
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Benayahu
authors.forename: Catherine S
authors.initials: CS
authors.lastname: McFadden
keywords: Alcyonacea; Indo-Pacific; Red Sea; new species; phylogeny; re-description; taxonomy